By Ed Rowley, October 2024
Ali Gray is the Head of Investor Relations at New Catalyst Strategic Partners, an independent, alternative investment firm that offers GP seeding and related growth capital solutions to Next Generation private market managers.
Ali is responsible for fundraising, managing relationships with New Catalyst’s limited partners and clients, and helping New Catalyst’s partner firms build their investor relations functions. Previously, Ali was the Director of Investor Relations at Newlight Partners, an emerging middle-market private equity firm. Prior to that she spent nearly six years at BlackRock where she most recently served as a Vice President within the Institutional Client Business.
Ali also works closely with the non-profit Him for Her where her efforts assist in connecting board building investors and CEOs with diverse board qualified talent.
New Catalyst Strategic Partners is an independent, majority diverse-owned alternative investment firm focused on providing flexible, strategic capital to Next Generation private market firms. We aim to acquire economic interests and minority ownership in these firms, which include emerging, developing, and diverse managers, and work with them hand-in-hand to catalyze their growth. The firm launched earlier this year with founding support from and in strategic partnership with Apollo.
New Catalyst’s founder, Jason Howard, has extensive pre-consensus investing experience, particularly in identifying and partnering with talented Next Generation firms early in their development. Leveraging Jason's background in working with private market firms—sometimes even at the ideation stage of a spin-out or launch—enables us to build strong, trust-based partnerships with GPs.
While Jason's expertise is a key differentiator, our broader team also brings deep experience across private markets, contributing to the cultivation and nurturing of GP relationships. By working together, we ensure a collaborative approach that we believe strengthens our ability to identify and partner with high-potential GPs. The diverse backgrounds and perspectives within our team complement Jason’s leadership, enhancing our overall ability to execute investment opportunities and support Next Generation GPs through each stage of their growth.
We believe what differentiates us is our deep commitment to value creation. We provide the kind of ongoing fundraising, strategy, operational infrastructure, development, and portfolio management support that we believe is often unavailable to Next Generation GPs. This allows us to partner closely with GPs, helping them scale their businesses and develop into enduring, institutional-quality firms.
In addition, our strategic partnership with Apollo provides us with additional resources and capital, further enhancing our ability to provide meaningful support to Next Generation GPs as they grow.
A key priority for us is to ensure that our prospective partner firms will have the operational support they need to succeed. This includes everything from strategic guidance and fundraising support to operational infrastructure and portfolio management.
We will tailor our approach to address each firm’s unique needs, providing targeted support to help them navigate today’s evolving market—characterized by higher borrowing costs, increased holding periods, and pressures on fundraising. By helping partners manage these challenges, we aim to empower them to adapt and grow in an environment where specialization and operational efficiency will be increasingly critical to long-term success.
In my role as Head of Investor Relations, I will focus on two primary objectives. First, ensuring that we build relationships with potential LPs and cultivate and maintain strong connections with investors. Second, working alongside our operating partner, Monica Davis, to help our partner firms build high-quality investor relations functions.
Strong IR is critical for Next Generation GPs, and I will help our partners develop effective, scalable IR functions that communicate with investors, build trust, and secure the capital they need to grow. By providing forward-looking, hands-on support, we believe we will equip our partner firms to succeed both in the short and long term.
In today’s market, we see significant opportunities for private market managers who can navigate the complexities of specialization and targeted expertise. We believe LPs are increasingly willing to invest in managers who demonstrate a clear edge within a specific area, whether through co-investment opportunities, secondary markets, or continuation vehicles.
We see that this trend is driving managers to adopt more specialized strategies and to prioritize value creation—focusing on areas like AI, tech adaptation, and other targeted growth initiatives. At New Catalyst, we are dedicated to supporting these specialized approaches, recognizing the evolving needs of both LPs seeking strong DPI ratios and GPs striving to build durable, high-performing franchises in this environment.
We recognize that talent is broadly distributed, but opportunity often isn’t. We think this creates a competitive edge for New Catalyst, as we’re focused on identifying great investment opportunities that might otherwise be overlooked. By partnering with emerging, developing, and diverse managers, we aim to help bridge this gap and unlock potential that has been underappreciated in the market.
The opportunity to catalyze the growth of under-resourced, yet high-potential GPs is one we’re incredibly excited about, and we believe this tailored, hands-on approach will continue to resonate with both diverse and non-diverse managers alike.
We believe one of the biggest challenges in today’s private markets landscape is the increasing difficulty for GPs to raise capital and grow their investor base.
Launching a firm has become prohibitively expensive, even for highly talented and experienced investors. The cost of building an institutional-quality private market fund—from operational infrastructure to compliance to GP commitments and fundraising—has escalated to the point where it’s nearly impossible for some emerging GPs to self-finance their growth. Compounding this, LPs are concentrating more of their capital with larger, more established managers, which can make it even harder for smaller or new firms to break through.
Many GPs seek an ideal, long-term strategic partner who can help them launch with scale and navigate the challenges of launching and scaling a firm. This is one of the key reasons New Catalyst was created. We recognize the significant unmet market need for flexible, strategic capital and hands-on support, particularly for Next Generation GPs.
Our model is designed to address these challenges head-on by providing the resources necessary for GPs to launch, scale, and grow sustainably. We offer not only capital but also operational hands-on support, helping managers navigate the complexities of launching a firm—we focus on establishing best practices across fundraising, strategy development, human capital, and portfolio management.
Investing in Next Generation GPs often requires significant time and resources, which is why we believe our hands-on approach as a strategic partner is so critical. By sourcing opportunities, seeking to de-risk investments, and offering ongoing support, we help GPs build credibility and momentum with LPs, with the goal of making it easier for them to attract and retain investors.
The current environment may present hurdles, but we believe it also creates opportunities for firms like ours to bring something truly catalytic to the market. By addressing these challenges with tailored capital and expertise, we’re seeking to unlock the potential of the next wave of private market managers.
At New Catalyst, we’ve found that our collective experience and deep networks are some of the most effective tools for reaching new investors.
Our team has decades of combined experience working with investors, allocators, founders, and intermediaries, which we believe has given us embedded goodwill and trust with key industry participants that provides a significant competitive advantage. This network allows us to source and create deal flow that we believe doesn’t often exist on typical LP pipelines, giving us access to new investors and opportunities that might otherwise be missed.
Direct outreach has been a core component of our strategy. We are leveraging the relationships we’ve built over the years to connect with investors in a more personalized, meaningful way. In addition to this, we’ve been attending key industry conferences and events, meeting investors where they are. These face-to-face interactions have been invaluable for us to share our vision and explain the differentiated value proposition of New Catalyst’s strategy, particularly in a challenging market environment where differentiation is critical.
Our message has resonated with a broad base of stakeholders, and it’s made us even more enthusiastic about the opportunities New Catalyst has to make an impact in both the near and long term. The combination of what we see as our team’s sourcing advantage and our proactive outreach efforts has been instrumental in expanding our investor base and building momentum for our platform.
Establishing robust compliance practices and integrating our CRM system into daily workflows are invaluable in my role. Leveraging technology to enhance transparency and facilitate ongoing dialogue is a major focus within the IR workstream, and this approach helps us stay on top of communication and follow-ups with LPs. Our goal is for LPs to feel they have a trusted partner with whom they are in continuous, open communication.
People are at the heart of IR, and at New Catalyst, we’re committed to treating our LP and GP relationships as true partnerships. The most important lesson I’ve learned in my career is that communication—even in the smallest details—can make a significant impact. We’re always striving to enhance communication methods, finding more efficient, effective ways to stay connected. By embracing new developments in new technology, we ensure our partners receive accessible communication at every step.
While IR is often associated with fundraising, I prioritize the post-fundraising phase, focusing on building strong, long-term relationships with LPs. Each LP has different preferences and communication needs, so developing a deep understanding of their priorities and circumstances is key.
I’ve learned that successful IR partners stand out by maintaining ongoing, meaningful dialogue rather than simply pitching opportunities. LPs want to know their GPs have their best interests in mind beyond the fundraise, which requires a dedicated commitment to continual engagement. Every LP relationship is distinct, and successful IR requires a commitment to ongoing dialogue and trust-building well beyond the initial investment.
One of the most exciting trends we’re seeing is the growing emphasis on innovation within private markets. Many GPs are increasingly incorporating tech-driven solutions—such as AI, data analytics, and digital platforms—into their investment strategies and operations. This is not only improving efficiency and decision-making but also creating new opportunities for value creation across different sectors. As these technologies continue to evolve, we expect them to play an even more central role in shaping the future of the industry.
This shift toward more creative and flexible capital solutions is becoming more evident as private markets continue to mature and is also met with an increasing appetite for collaboration. Investors and managers alike are recognizing that traditional fundraising models don’t always fit the needs of Next Generation GPs, and they’re increasingly open to new structures, co-investments, and partnerships that can drive growth in fresh and meaningful ways.
Overall, we’re very optimistic about the future of private markets. There’s a lot of momentum behind firms that can blend innovation with purpose, and at New Catalyst, we’re excited to be part of this evolution. The industry is adapting and finding new ways to thrive, and we’re seeing opportunities for both GPs and LPs to create lasting value in ways that are more strategic, impactful, and forward-thinking.
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